Apple, rhubarb and beetroot salad

Apple, rhubarb and beetroot salad

Autumn

You can serve this lovely, crunchy apple salad just as it is, as a light lunch. It’s fresh and clean, packed with goodness, and will see you right into the evening. Alternatively, you can serve it alongside some other seasonal delights. It would go beautifully with roast venison, or some smoked wild duck. You could embellish it with fresh goat’s cheese and walnuts or serve it as a salad course, after something rich like a stew or some fatty pork chops. If you can manage to slice neat, whole rounds off each beetroot, then this is good, but if they come off in half-moons and a mismatch of shavings, that is fine, too. It can pay to nick a section off the base of each beetroot, so it sits down nice and steady on the board as you slice.

Serves 4

Ingredients

  • 2–3 raw beetroot (about 250–375g/9–13oz), peeled and very thinly sliced
  • 1–2 crisp apples (such as Cox, Spartan or Russet), quartered, cored and thinly sliced lengthways
  • 1 tbsp cider vinegar
  • 1–2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 long or 2 shorter snappy rhubarb sticks, trimmed and sliced into 2mm (1⁄16in) rounds
  • About 1 tbsp runny honey
  • Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

Place the beetroot slices in a large bowl. Scatter the apple pieces over the beetroot. Spoon over half the vinegar, trickle over half the olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

Arrange the lightly dressed beetroot and apple in a serving dish. Scatter over the sliced rhubarb, spoon over the remaining vinegar and olive oil, and season with a bit more salt and pepper. Trickle everything generously with honey and bring to the table. It won’t hurt leaving this salad to sit for an hour or so at room temperature. It gives everything a chance to settle and develop.

Back to Membership